Identities
by evilyangelic2
Summary: "No, I'm definitely not a part of this world!" I snapped at him, "My kingdom got taken away from me, and now I'm here. Now I'm here protecting this planet, something I never was meant to do. I don't even know who I am anymore!"
1. Chapter 1

This is a rewrite of "Identity" which I wrote in 2008. I'm proud of the original version, but I _have _grown a lot as a writer since then. I thought it'd be nice to tweak it as well as correct a few blatant spelling/grammar mistakes. Hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: Sailor Moon does, unfortunately, not belong to me.

"Sailor Moon! Sailor Mercury!", my Scouts shouted out in unison.

To me, it sounded as if their screams were muffled by a thick wall of glass. It was hard to hear much over the ringing in my ears.

The youma we were in the midst of fighting had proven to be on an entirely different level than anything else we had faced so far. It seemed as if the Negaverse had run out of cannon-fodder and were now bringing out the big guns. The warrior in me, the part of me I hardly ever dared to acknowledge, was overjoyed.

The snakelike monster moved like the wind, successfully dodging most of the attacks which were sent its way. But that wasn't the biggest of our problems, no, it definitely wasn't. The youma spat out venom which seemed as if it could melt diamonds.

Very shakily, I got back on my feet. I looked to a spot about fifteen feet away where Sailor Mercury's body lay motionless, burns and scorch-marks adorning most of her body. I wasn't at all surprised when I realized that she had pushed me out of the way and taken the blast of venom which had been meant to disable me from battling.

With a shaking hand, I touched a sore spot at the back of my head. Blood. Nausea flooded me as my vision blurred and my head started to pound even harder than it had been. The metallic scent never failed to make me sick to my stomach, and I hoped that I wouldn't vomit.

I was snapped back to attention by the sound of more screams. The rest of my scouts, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus, had just been taken out by the disgusting creature we'd been trying to defeat for the past twenty-five minutes. As exhausted as I was, I knew it was all up to me now.

I heard a small voice at the back of my head, the one I'd been hearing during every battle since I had been chosen to be Sailor Moon, '_What did I ever do to deserve this?'_

The youma's eyes glowed red. In the short time we'd been battling it, we had discovered (well, truthfully, Mercury had discovered) that this meant it was getting ready to spew out another shot of venom. There was no one left to target but me.

I knew I had to dodge, I wasn't stupid. Luna had trained me quite well despite all the protesting she'd had to put up with. The thing was, I wasn't sure if I wanted to.

It would be so easy, just _so easy_ to take the hit head-on and let it all end.

However, the venom never made contact with me. Like clockwork, my knight in shining armor had shown up and whisked me out of danger's path.

Tucked in Tuxedo Masks arms, a spot I used to covet, I thought to myself, '_Tuxedo Mask, the last of my saviours.' _Even I was a bit surprised at how bitter I sounded.

But I couldn't deny that I had, somewhere along the line, become bitter. Very bitter.

Tuxedo Mask set me to the ground, "It's up to you Sailor Moon. Give this youma everything you've got, I believe in you." He stared down at me intently and I remembered how I used to lose sleep thinking about what his eyes must be like behind that domino-mask of his.

I didn't reply, I couldn't. Nothing I said at that moment would have been positive. He believed in me? So what? That didn't mean I wouldn't die tonight.

I walked past him and towards the youma. I looked the thing dead in the eye. It suddenly hit me how much I hated it. I hated it for what it had done to my Scouts, I hated it for what it was trying to do to my planet, and, most of all, I hated it for what it was making _me _do to it.

Hate, such an ugly and powerful emotion, started rolling off my body in crackling waves of energy. Closing my eyes, I unclasped the crystal from the broach on my chest and channeled the energy into it. I could feel it pulsing, growing hot to the point where it was blistering my hands. Just as the youma began to charge towards me, the crystal unleashed a beam of blinding light.

The snake never stood a chance.

Breathing heavily, I was hit with the sick feeling I experienced after each use of the crystal. I sank down to my knees, not having the strength to keep myself up any longer. I noticed that blood was still seeping out of my head-wound. I may not have been a medical expert, but I was certain that that wasn't a good thing.

I noticed that Tuxedo Mask had bolted. I wasn't shocked, it wasn't as if he ever hung around to chat after a battle. I looked around the small clearing, locating my Scouts. Each was unconscious, but their burns and cuts were nearly healed. Being a Scout was a dreadful experience most of the time, but it did have one distinct advantage: accelerated healing.

I let out a small sigh of relief; my Scouts would be fine.

I stood back up, knowing I had to leave the battle site. The youma was defeated and my job there was done. Ignoring the pain which was radiating through my body, I took a leap to the nearest tree. Pretty soon I was bolting from rooftop to rooftop, the wind whipping at my face.

That was when I blacked out.

It was dark, pitch black even. I was floating amongst the blackness, not a care in the world. I hadn't felt this calm since, well, since before _she _had begun to take me over.

Then the peace was disturbed. I could feel it, feel someone trying to pull me out of this blissful state of nothingness. Why would they do that? Why couldn't anyone just let me be? Just let me float away like I wanted to? Was it so hard to let me become a part of the nothingness?

I tried to resist, I really did. I gave it everything I had, but even Sailor Moon couldn't resist this pull. Someone was being _very _persistent. Somehow, this person had convinced my subconscious to betray me, I knew this because I could feel myself begin to wake up.

Suddenly, the intense pain which had been blocked out by being unconscious came over me. My mouth opened, unleashing a silent scream. I clutched at whatever was supporting my weight. I recognized what was crumpled between my fingers, soft and thin, it was a bed-sheet. Certainly not the cold, hard surface of the roof I had been expecting.

Breathing through the pain, I cracked open one eye, and then the other. I was surrounded by few things. I was on a bed, that was for certain, and there was a bare nightstand beside it. To my left was a door that led to a place I'd never get to see and to my right hung a painting by an artist I should have recognized, but didn't. Next to the painting was a patio door partially concealed by white gossamer curtains, and next to this patio was Tuxedo Mask.

He leaned against the wall, his form completely concealed safe for his head and shoulders which were illuminated by the moonlight streaming in through the sheer curtains.

Momentarily, I felt a burst of panic rush up my spine. Although his actions had spoken for themselves, it had never been confirmed that he was truly friend and not foe. The panic was quickly replaced with relief; I could have been found by much worse.

Tuxedo Mask was staring at me. I had no idea how long he had been doing so, nor did I care to find out. I figured I should leave.

Through my agony, I picked myself up form off the bed and got to my feet.

He stared.

I crossed the room towards the patio - the closest exit point.

Still, he stared.

I pulled back the curtains and slid the screen door open. I realized that I couldn't leave without thanking him.

"You saved me tonight and for that I'm grateful. Thank you."

He grabbed me right as I tried to leap out the window. He spun me towards him, until our faces were mere inches apart.

I could feel his breath tickle my face as he spoke, his voice low, "What are you?"

I smirked, not feeling as scared as I probably should have, "I'm a superhero."

Tuxedo Mask ignored my quip, "You're not human."

I let out a small laugh, "I'm not, am I?"

He released me, so that I was no longer standing so close. I instantly felt myself calm down.

He turned from me and paced to the other side of the room, "I've never seen power like that. You, your crystal, you're not from this world."

_Not from this world. _Those words struck a chord within me. Suddenly, I felt tears spring to my eyes and I found myself begging to unseen forces that they would not fall down my cheeks. I wouldn't let this man see me cry. I tried to stop feeling sad, and instead I grew angry.

"No, I'm definitely not a part of this world!" I snapped at him, "My kingdom got taken away from me, and now I'm here. Now I'm here protecting this planet, something I never was meant to do, something I _never wanted to do. _I don't even know who I am anymore!" My chest was heaving from the force of my outburst.

If he had been affected by my anger, he didn't show it.

"I never knew." he stated quietly, his voice even.

"No. You wouldn't."

I watched as he came closer. Suddenly, Tuxedo Mask was as close as he had been a few moments before. I noted that it wasn't unpleasant.

We stood there like that for a few seconds; our bodies close, nothing around us but silence and darkness. Then, something popped into my mind.

"Don't you care?" I asked him. Instead of a reply, confusion etched his features.

I bit my lip and looked away, "Once I leave this room, I'll know where you live. That doesn't exactly bode well for the whole secretive superhero thing, now does it?"

Then he smiled, something I had seldom witnessed in the while we had been fighting side by side.

"Maybe," he grasped one of my hands, "Maybe, I don't care. Maybe I trust you."

I felt my heart speed up as he continued to speak, "Maybe I'd be willing to reveal my identity to you."

I tore my hand from his and stepped back, "Don't be a fool, Tuxedo Mask." I hissed.

His voice grew in volume, "I'm a fool for trusting you? A fool for trusting a girl in whom all of Tokyo trusts?"

I narrowed my eyes, "I didn't ask them to trust me."

"But they do. And so do I."

I watched as his body started to glow with all the perfect colors of a sunset and realized that he had made up his mind. He didn't care that I didn't want to be burdened with this new tidbit of information. People didn't often care about what I did or didn't want.

I was in no way prepared to see Darien Shields standing before me.

I tried to keep my face impassive even though I felt as if the wind had just been knocked out of my lungs. This just could not be happening.

He looked at me through the piercing blue eyes which were so familiar to me, expecting a reaction when I had none to give. I had no choice but to stay neutral. Trying not to feel was the only thing that had been keeping me sane.

'_If this is sane, maybe I should welcome insanity with open arms.'_

I knew he was waiting for some sort of sign, something to indicate that I was okay with this. I smiled in order to acknowledge that I knew this had been a lot harder for him than he had led on. I could tell he didn't normally let people in, and this had been a huge thing to reveal. Why he had chosen to reveal himself to _me, _I had no clue.

I turned to my exit, stepping out onto balcony.

"I don't know who I am either." his voice carried over to my ears.

Before running off into the night, I turned to him with my lips curved in a smirk, "No, but I do."

By the time I climbed through the window and into my bedroom, I was certain about one thing;

The Sailor Scouts were never to hear about anything that had transpired between Tuxedo Mask and I.

I quietly undid my transformation and found myself dressed in the jogging-pants and tank top I had been in before the battle. I climbed into my bed and hoped that sleep would take me away.

Instead, I found myself thinking of Darien.

Our last run-in, quite literally, had been a little over a month ago. I now tried to avoid the arcade as well as all the people associated with it. That had all been a part of my old life, the one I had lived as Serena.

The Moon Princess Serenity didn't have time for such trivialities. She had youmas to fight, a dark kingdom to take down...

'_...friends to put in danger, people to disappoint.'_

Before we all became privy to the fact that Serena, Sailor Moon, and Serenity were one in the same, I had always clung to the hope that Luna would wake up one day and realize that she had made a colossal mistake. I clung to the hope that she would tell me I wasn't the right girl.

As Raye had pointed out countless times in the past, I was far from being qualified for the job.

Unbeknownst to all my companions, I wished that we had never reunited the seven rainbow crystals. I wished we had never awakened Serenity, who had been laying dormant inside me all of these years.

The discovery hadn't brought any joy to me, like it had to the rest of our elite group. Instead, it brought one notion to the forefront of my mind;

Serena Tsukino was never supposed to have existed. I'd spent the last sixteen years of my life living a complete and utter lie.

Ever since then, Serenity had gained strength and begun to take my body over. Serena submitted, too weak to put up any real fight.

Now I wasn't sure of anything anymore. I wasn't completely Serenity, nor was I Serena. I was living in limbo, waiting until Serenity inevitably took my entire being over. The princess would one day rule again.

It had been foretold, and, well, who was Serena Tsukino to stand up against fate?


	2. Chapter 2

Darien's POV.

Six. _Six _nights since I had decided to reveal my identity to her. Six nights since I'd last seen her. Maybe that was a sign, maybe I had made a mistake.

I still wasn't quite sure what had compelled me to do so. I was being honest when I said that I trusted her, but I wasn't sure when I come to trust her so explicitly. Wasn't I in violation of some sort of Hero Code of Conduct? I half-expected authorities to bang down my door and strip me of my powers.

I had definitely wanted her to do the same. Many a night I had lain awake trying to piece together who the elusive heroine of Tokyo was by day. Yeah, I had wanted her to put an end to the mystery, did I think she would? No way in hell.

Nevertheless, it had felt like the right thing to do at the time. Which was, honestly, completely crazy. My judgement _had _been slightly clouded due to the fact that my mind had still been reeling from her confession.

_She wasn't from this world._

Maybe it shouldn't have come as such a surprise to me. Her title _was _Sailor Moon after all. I had never given it much thought. She looked human, she _felt _human, she acted human; how was I to know she wasn't? I felt my admiration of her had been reinforced that night. She had put her life on the line countless times trying to save Earth, and she wasn't even an earthling.

I could feel a massive migraine coming on from all the thoughts that were currently whirling around in my head. The fact that sunlight was pouring into my room certainly didn't help. I figured it must have been around seven in the morning. I glanced to my clock; seven-fifteen.

As per my usual, I got out of bed, took a shower, and got dressed; green jacket and all. Making sure everything in my apartment was turned off and back in place (I was a bit of a clean freak, so sue me), I grabbed my car keys and headed out towards the arcade. I did this every morning before class.

Speeding down 4th Street, a familiar niggling voice at the back of my mind decided to, once again, make itself be heard, '_She won't be there you know.' _

Of course I knew, but what else could I do? This girl had been even harder to get a hold of than Sailor Moon. I hadn't seen Serena in over a month.

It was as if she had dropped off the face of the Earth. She never came to the arcade anymore, and neither did her friends. I sometimes had to wonder if she even still lived in the Jubaan area. Would she have moved without saying goodbye? A while ago, I would have sworn up and down that she wouldn't do such a thing, but now, it seemed as if everyone in my life had undergone some sort of personality transplant.

I thought back to the last time I saw Serena, a memory that always made me feel quite uneasy. Nothing stood out as being particularly strange, but the entire feeling throughout the encounter had been one of tension.

_I grunted as I felt the familiar weight crash into my side. Along with it came the all too familiar thrill that shot up my spine. Being so close to her, even in these brief, and, I'll admit it, sometimes painful, moments, always - did things to me._

"_Watch it Meatball Head!" I shouted at her while rubbing the sore spot on the arm she had just collided into. _

_Instead of the wailing and yelling I had grown accustomed to, I came face to face with tear-filled eyes and a sad smile._

_All feelings of annoyance were instantly washed away and replaced with the deepest of concern. Just as I was about to ask her what was wrong, I noticed her four closest friends run up behind her._

"_Come on Serena, we need to hurry!" the blue haired one, the one I had come to know as being the incredibly intelligent Amy, urged Serena. _

"_Yeah Serena, this isn't the time to be making goo-goo eyes at Darien." Reye, who was obviously still quite possessive of me, added. _

_Serena nodded, acknowledging the fact that she did indeed have to rush off somewhere. The other four ran off, and Serena started to follow. _

_Before she got very far, she turned back towards me. She looked me up and down, almost as if she was trying to memorize every single part of me._

"_Later, Darien!" she called out as she turned away from me once more and broke into a sprint. _

The scene had felt a tad peculiar, but I had just been under the impression that they were late to a party or something else that sixteen year old girls did on the weekend. Yes, Serena _had _been crying. But, when wasn't she? Reye could have just insulted her or something. I cursed myself for being to oblivious.

Now I knew that it had been goodbye.

I parked my car outside the arcade, and stepped through the sliding glass doors. The arcade was empty; it usually was around eight in the morning. Andrew had probably just unlocked the doors.

"Morning, Darien." Andrew, who had been my best friend for the past forever, greeted me with the easy grin he was famous for.

I took a seat on my usual stool at the counter, the one directly in front of the coffee-maker. Andrew was already getting my mug ready for me.

From behind me, I could hear the whooshing of the arcade doors sliding open. I was caught off-guard by the giggling of teenage girls. I whirled around to face them so quickly that I nearly fell off my stool. This earned me a few confused glances and arched eyebrows from the trio of brunettes who had just walked in.

Once again, I was faced with the disappointment I subconsciously knew I would be greeted with. None of these girls were Serena. I felt foolish for even turning around to check. She hadn't been around in so long, why would she come in _now?_

Andrew, who had obviously witnessed my little display, handed me my coffee and said, "I miss her too, you know. This place seems dead without her and her friends around." His gaze swept the arcade, landing on the Sailor V game the fivesome had always coveted.

"Yeah" I grunted, "Anyway, I need to get to Physics." I downed the contents of my mug, effectively burning my throat, and threw some money on the table.

Andrew raised his eyebrows, "But your class doesn't start until ten."

I stuttered, trying to come up with a plausible excuse, "Yeah, but, well, I have a meeting with a student I'm tutoring."

He still didn't seem totally convinced, but I dashed out of the arcade before he had a chance to say anything else.

I had to get out of there. I just _didn't _want to have any conversations with Serena as their main subject.

That night, I woke up in a cold sweat around what felt like two in the morning. It had been the same dream I'd been having for months, the one that never failed to keep me awake for the rest of the night.

I reached over to where I had a glass of water sitting and waiting for me. That's when I noticed her silhouette on the balcony, perched atop the railing as if it were nothing unusual.

I jumped out of bed and slid open the patio door. I hoped she wouldn't run away.

"You! You're here!" I stuttered, then felt foolish. _Smooth Darien, very smooth. _

Sailor Moon nodded, "I come here every night. I watch you sleep."

She turned her head away, looking almost embarrassed by her confession. After a short pause, she spoke again, "You have nightmares."

I shrugged, "Everyone has nightmares."

Sailor Moon bit her bottom lip, I noticed that this was a habit of hers, "Yours are worse."

This wasn't a question, simply a statement of facts.

I couldn't even begin to describe my recurring nightmare to her, it was as touchy a subject as Serena was, "I don't want to talk about them."

Sailor Moon's lips seemed to curve up into a small smile, "That's fair. You've already revealed so much to me. I have no right to invade your privacy more than I already have."

I was going to remind her that I had _chosen _to let her in on my secret, but chose to stay quiet. It was then that I noticed how much this young woman had matured. The Sailor Moon I had known thus far would have continued to pry until I gave in.

"You've changed." I thought aloud.

"I know."

A silence settled over us. It wasn't uncomfortable, and I felt oddly at peace. Then I felt compelled to break it, "Do your Scouts realize?"

I kept my gaze towards the sleeping city, but I heard her chuckle. It was the first time I had heard anything resembling a laugh escape her lips in a very long time.

"Ignorance is bliss I suppose. If they don't notice that I've changed, then they won't have to deal with it." she chuckled again, "It's simpler this way, I think. I don't particularly want to deal with all the questioning."

I nodded, satisfied by her answer. The silence crept its way back in again, and, once more, it wasn't unpleasant. This time, it was Sailor Moon who chose to interrupt it.

"I've seen them die, you know?" she whispered. If there hadn't been complete silence around us, I would never have heard her.

I was taken aback by her confession. She pressed on, this time, her voice a little louder.

"One by one, they all fell. Each one dying to protect me."

I tried to hide my shock, but I had a feeling she could see right through me. It didn't seem to phase her.

"How did you bring them back?" I asked.

She looked me dead in the eye and smirked, "I'm magic."

I didn't doubt that for a second. From what I'd witnessed, this woman possessed enough power in her pinkie to destroy this entire city. Judging by her somber disposition, I found it mildly surprising that she didn't use her powers for anything but good.

She looked up towards the full moon, its light illuminating her features beautifully. There was no denying that she was a great beauty, no denying it at all. She closed her eyes for a few seconds, and every single part of her seemed to cry out in longing.

"Can I ask you something?" I said.

"Isn't that what you've been doing?" she teased, and for a second I was _almost _reminded of Serena.

I pressed on, "What happened to you?"

I couldn't bear how empty she had seemed out of late. The contrast between the woman standing in front of me and the Sailor Moon I used to fight alongside of was startling.

Sailor Moon hesitated, almost as if she didn't quite know the reason either, "I don't have an easy life, Darien. But, I guess you could relate, couldn't you? I've had this inconceivable power thrust upon me at such a young age. Not to mention the fact that there are entire kingdoms out there who would like nothing more than to see me dead-"

I cut her off, "But it's never seemed to have affected you in such a way. You always seemed so positive..."

She turned away, her gaze seeming to fix on the Starlight Tower that was shining in the distance, "There are things that even Tuxedo Mask isn't privy to."

"Maybe I could help you." I offered. At the moment, I wanted nothing more than to hear Sailor Moon laugh once again.

She shook her head, "I don't think you could."

"Try me." I didn't know why I was being so persistent. This really wasn't any of my business. The thing was, I suddenly felt overwhelmingly compelled to know what was bothering this person, this person who was pretty much a stranger to me. The again, the only person in my life who wasn't a stranger to me was Andrew.

Sailor Moon seemed to contemplate the situation. She looked straight at me, her eyes slightly narrowed, almost as if she were judging whether or not I'd be able to withstand the shock from what she was about to tell me. I grew a bit nervous.

"I'm the Moon Princess."

That I had _not _been expecting. My mind was reeling, once again she had managed to completely blow me away.

"I dream of you!" I blurted out, thinking my prayers were answered. All this time I'd been searching for the princess, and she had been right under my nose.

"No, apparently you have _nightmares_ about me. And that's quite fitting, because, so far, none of this has been anything _but _a nightmare."

I ran a sweaty hand through my hair, "But, I think, I don't know - I think you can tell me who I am."

All I had ever wished for, ever since I could remember, was finding out who I really was. Too much of my past was foggy, too many of my memories were locked away. This woman was supposed to be able to free me from not knowing.

She looked at me, her big eyes filled with sorrow, "I'm sorry, I really don't know."

I felt let down, as if my hopes and dreams had just plummeted to the ground, "But, you're the princess!"

"I know, Darien!" she snapped, "But it's not that simple. I don't even quite know who I am, so how could I possibly help you?"

I rubbed at my temples, "I'm confused. I don't know what you're talking about half the time."

She prepared to take her leave, "Trust me, I'm every bit as confused."

Watching her run off into the night, I didn't think I had ever seen such a melancholy sight.


End file.
